From Publishers Weekly
Johannes Kepler (1571–1630) was a towering figure in early modern science, a contemporary of Tycho Brahe and Galileo who discovered the fundamental laws governing the motion of the planets. Connor goes further, offering a remarkably human portrait of Kepler, grounded in the day-to-day life of a mathematician and astronomer simply trying to make a living and navigate the turbulent politics of Counter-Reformation Europe while staying true to his own ideals. This is not the Kepler one might know from textbooks—Connor's Kepler is a man driven by his deep Lutheran faith, yet ultimately excommunicated for his desire to reach out to Catholics and Calvinists; a man who seems less concerned with greatness than truth and a little bit of peace and happiness. As Connor writes in his preface, the book is as much a piece of literary nonfiction about the "kitchen details" of life in the early 17th century as it is a biography of a great astronomer. As the engaging narrative ranges from life amid religious unrest in Prague to the "trumped-up" witchcraft charges against Kepler's mother, one finds oneself lost in a world haunted by shadows and fears, yet which holds the promise of a new era of reason and enlightenment. This portrait poses a striking contrast to that in Heavenly Intrigue, which dubiously purports that Kepler was a virtual psychopath who killed Brahe to obtain his secret data. Maps. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
On his deathbed, one of history's greatest astronomers voiced no satisfaction over his achievements in advancing planetary physics but a great deal of frustration over his lifelong powerlessness to resolve religious conflict. A former Jesuit, Connor here probes the dark religious events that enshrouded the brilliant scientific career of Johannes Kepler. The forces of Reformation and Counter-Reformation repeatedly convulsed the European world in which Kepler pursued his pioneering research, but Connor chiefly scrutinizes the religious turmoil peculiar to Kepler's life. Readers see, for instance, how Kepler fought to maintain friendships with both Catholics and Protestants, how he struggled to harmonize his own sophisticated faith with his wife's simple piety, how he suffered when his intellectual openness cost him his cherished communion as a Lutheran, and, finally, how he jeopardized his reputation to defend an eccentric mother accused of witchcraft. Rich with new translations of Kepler's journals, poetry, and correspondence, this compelling narrative will leave readers wondering how a man so enmeshed in religious travail ever managed to penetrate the mystery of planetary orbits, to blaze a path toward calculus, and to formulate the founding principles of optics. But nothing will astound readers more than the way the religiously vexed Kepler persisted in interpreting his discoveries as evidence of the divine harmony in the universe! Connor indeed argues that precisely because he framed his science in the language of worship, Kepler has received less than his due from rationally minded scholars. This luminous biography will help remedy that injustice. Bryce Christensen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
From Book News, Inc.
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) confirmed Copernicus and made a first close attempt at defining a law of gravity, says Connor (English, Kean U., New Jersey), but above all was a man who contemplated in mathematics the glory of God, who found God in the hidden mathematical harmonies of the universe as surely as he did in the revelations of Scripture. Oh yes, he did have a number of obstacles and distractions while he was accomplishing this.Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Booklist - Starred Review
"Kepler has received less than his due from rationally-minded scholars. This luminous biography will help remedy that injustice."
Kirkus Reviews
"The author admirably sets Kepler within the important context of his faith."
Tucson Citizen
"A compelling story of scientific discovery. . . crisply written, meticulously researched and highly recommended."
Los Angeles Times
"Fun to read..."
Christian Century
"No other Keplerian biography fleshes out so fully the background against which the astronomer worked."
National Catholic Reporter
"Connor delves into Kepler’s life in such a way that the scientist becomes a person of flesh and bone."
Book Description
Foreword by David Koch of NASA's Kepler Mission
Isaac Newton said that if he had seen farther than others, it was because he was standing on the shoulders of giants: Nicolaus Copernicus, Tycho Brahe, Galileo Galilei, and Johannes Kepler. James A. Connor focuses on one of those giants in his fascinating and largely untold story of the "Protestant Galileo," Johannes Kepler. Set against the backdrop of the witchcraft trial of his mother, Kepler's Witch vividly brings to life the tidal forces of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, submerging us into these turbulent times, revealing not only the surprisingly spiritual nature of early modern science, but Kepler's role as a neglected hero of conscience.
The doorway into Kepler's life and times begins with the sensational witchcraft trial of his elderly mother, Katharina, an eccentric woman who, like Kepler, was too smart for the world she lived in. The story is filled with crooked judges, sadistic bailiffs, and nasty neighbors bent on the destruction of this single, half-mad old woman. Using never-before translated transcripts of the trial, Connor explains that witches in the seventeenth century were the terrorists of their day. Tragically, thousands of people -- mostly women -- had gone to the stake by the time of Katharina Kepler's trial.
Johannes Kepler's life thus became a pilgrimage, a spiritual journey into the modern world through disease and horrible injustice on the eve of Europe's terrible and bloody Thirty Years' War. Kepler was concerned with more than scientific discoveries and achievement -- he fought for peace and reconciliation between the Christian churches, even when it nearly cost him his life. Exiled twice by Catholic princes and excommunicated by his fellow Lutherans, he was unbowed in his scientific and moral vision.
Besides the witchcraft trial records and testimonies, Connor has translated many of Kepler's diary entries and correspondence into English for the first time. With a great respect for the history of these times and the life of this man, Connor's unforgettable story illuminates Kepler, a man of science, as well as Kepler, a man of uncommon faith and courage.
About the Author
James A. Connor is a former Jesuit priest who is now professor of English at Kean University in Union, New Jersey. He has also held teaching posts at St. Louis University and Gonzaga University. The author of God's Breath and Other Stories and Silent Fire, a spiritual memoir, Connor holds degrees in geoscience, philosophy, theology, and creative writing, and a doctorate in literature and science. He has studied with writers such as Frank Conroy and is a prize-winning essayist published widely in American Book Review, Traditional Home Magazine, Willow Springs, The Critic, The Iowa Review, and The Iowa Journal of Literary Studies.
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